(Credit:
Blackfire Research)
Wi-Fi speakers have made some appearances over the last few years, in the form of prototypes and high-priced novelties. Finally, San Francisco-based Blackfire Research will release the Wi-Fi speakers we've been waiting for.
When the SmartSpeaker launches this summer, consumers will be able to stream audio, including Internet radio and movies, from Wi-Fi-enabled cellphone and computers.
Software for the speakers is still in development and will be available for the iPhone, Zune, Palm, Android, iPod Touch, and Blackberry by the time of launch.
Ravi Rajapakse, CEO of Blackfire Research, became interested in audio at the age of 12, when he built his first speaker. But despite extensive experience in speaker engineering, he faced difficulties streaming audio over a packet-based Wi-Fi protocol.
After years of research and the help of several Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Ravi succeeded in building proprietary technology that he plans to apply to the greater speaker market.
He created the BearClaw Smart Amps, amplifiers that attach to regular speakers and enable them to operate over Wi-Fi. Blackfire is working with other companies to integrate this technology into their own products, so any speaker can be a "smart speaker."
Stay tuned for pricing and an exact launch date over the next few months.
I've recently reviewed most of the contenders for the world's best headphones: the Audio Technica ATH-W5000, Denon AH-D7000, Sennheiser HD 800, Grado PS-1000, Ultrasone Edition 8, and the best headphones I've heard so far, the Stax electrostatic SR-007Mk2. I listened to the Stax with the Woo Audio WES headphone amplifier. If you want and can afford the best, go for the Stax-Woo combination.
The HE-5. real wood earcups, innovative technology, and awesome sound quality!
(Credit: Hifiman)But now I have yet another headphone to check out, and this one is a very different-sounding design. Oh, and it's less than half the price of the least expensive of those models!
It's called the Hifiman HE-5, and it uses planar-magnetic drivers to create sound. A planar magnetic driver is a large, flat Mylar diaphragm, coated with superthin aluminum, suspended between rows of slender bar magnets. The HE-5's diaphragm is therefore driven over its entire area, which dramatically reduces distortion; conventional dynamic headphone drivers are "driven" by a voice coil on the outer edge of the diaphragm, so the inner portion is more likely to distort.
The HE-5's driver is similar to the Stax electrostatic 'phones in that way, but the HE-5 doesn't use the bias charging scheme that all electrostatic headphones use, which also means the HE-5 can be used with standard headphone amplifiers. The Stax cannot.
The HE-5 is incredibly detailed sounding, but at the same time it's very smooth and laid back. Swapping between the HE-5 and the Sennheiser HD 800--considered by many to be the world's best dynamic headphone--the two headphones are opposites. The HD 800 is brighter, crisper, with more apparent treble detail; the HE-5 is softer, warmer, and more natural-sounding.
... Read more
Gunnar Optiks' Sphere glasses feature an "ultrawide wraparound format (that) creates a microclimate that protects your eyes from the drying effects of glare, heat, and dust--even when you spend long hours at the computer."
(Credit: Gunnar Optiks)Six out of seven people here at Crave Asia are bespectacled, and the last time I checked, everyone had their eyes glued to at least a 19-inch LCD monitor. Some have it worse with gigantic plasma screens, while others have to squint at pathetic QVGA displays.
It doesn't take an Einstein to know that our eyes go through an obscene amount of stress daily. Less work and more play obviously wouldn't sit well with our editors or HR policies. And citing risks of developing Digital Eye Fatigue or Computer Vision Syndrome, at best, will earn you a few sorry looks, followed by a piercing get-back-to-work stare.
Which is why Gunnar Optiks' proprietary i-AMP lens technology could help save both our eyes and our livelihoods. According to the U.S.-based maker of digital performance eyewear, i-AMP helps relax the ocular muscles that strain to view text and images at a close distance, while it also minimizes eye fatigue by improving eye focus, reducing glare, and blocking ambient light.
The million dollar quote? "Short term you're more effective...long term you'll stop frying your eyes." Now we can't wait to get one of these. They're available online for between $99 and $189, a small price to pay if they end up saving your eyes, really.
(Via Crave Asia)
The JamVOX hardware lets you call upon the guitar-winged gods of rock to rain down a firestorm of fret-tapping fury! It's also a USB audio card.
(Credit: Vox)
Are you a guitarist with just enough talent to shun Guitar Hero, but too little to form your own Kiss cover band? Boy, do we have the product for you.
The JamVOX is a hardware and software combo that outfits your computer with a tiny, badass VOX amp USB sound card and a software package with virtual amplifiers and effects (ala Guitar Rig) that helps you mute or solo the guitar parts from your favorite songs. Basically, this thing lets you surgically remove your guitar heroes from their songs, and replace them with your own ham-fisted shred fest.
The JamVOX system is due out in September, with a suggested retail around $350. Video after the break.... Read more
(Credit:
I4U News)
Not even a month has passed since the "Tri-Bot" has succeeded the Robosapien, and already another wheeled animatron is mounting a challenge. The "A.M.P." (Automated Musical Personality) Bot from Tiger Electronics differs from the Tri-Bot by navigating on two wheels instead of three, a feat made possible by its gyroscopic system.
It's also not meant as a kindergarten toy, according to Gearlog, measuring 2.5 feet tall and weighing in at a hefty 15 pounds. The target consumer's age is between 16 and 25, in fact, and for good reason: The A.M.P., which also plays and dances to the beat of MP3s, is expected to cost between $400 and $500 when it rolls into stores in October.
(Credit:
Red5)
In a world where everyone seems to fancy themselves a guitar hero, something like this makes perfect sense. If some people will go so far as to carry a Fender "Stacked Amp Wallet," for instance, it's certainly not a stretch to think they'll go for an MP3 speaker that looks like an amp as well.
The "Mytunes MP3 Amp" actually has some impressive details considering its diminutive size, including working bass and treble dials. It even has a faux leather casing and corner protectors to minimize damage in mid-slash.
The 5-watt speaker will work with the iPod or any other MP3 player, according to Slippery Brick, though it can be plugged into a PC through its USB connection as well--just in case you're too embarrassed to be seen in public with it.
(Credit:
OldGlory)
With guitar mania still going full bore and showing no sign of abatement, it may be only a matter of time before this kind of fashion item comes into vogue.
This Fender "Stacked Amp Wallet" is a miniature replica of the soundstage equipment, right down to an "amp cord" that connects to a belt loop (or wherever), as Gearfuse observes. This might actually be something to consider if it had a built-in MP3 player, but unfortunately it's just a billfold with a little attitude.
Don't despair, however, because there are still plenty of other loops left for the "Guitar Hero Carabiner."
(Credit:
Wal-Mart)
We have only one request of those who are wondering whether to get a Guitar Hero "Air Guitar Rocker": If you're a middle-aged man, don't.
It's one thing if you're Crave-meister Brian Tong, who sampled it at CES earlier this year, but it's not the same with an old guy trying desperately to relive his youth with air guitar. Jada Toys' device is finally on sale at Target, Wal-Mart, and other big retailers, offering a mini-amplifier, sensor-packed belt buckle, and an "Air Cartridge" with "ten signature guitar riffs" of various degrees of difficulty, according to Engadget.
It's the latest in a long and depressing line of air guitar devices that come in the form of a wristband, electric pick, T-shirt, and an amputated neck. The Air Guitar Rocker does have the vaunted Guitar Hero seal of approval, of course. But, as we've seen before, that's not necessarily enough to keep a player from self-inflicted embarrassment.
(Credit:
Audio Junkies)
First off, we must disclose that there's no relation between Shigeki Yamamoto, the designer of the tube amplifier pictured with this item, and any particular Cravers we know. How can we be so sure? Because neither we nor any of our relatives would be smart enough to charge up to $7,300 for a piece of audio equipment that looks like a high school electronics project. We've seen our share of tube amplifiers, but the "high-end flea watt tube amp" boasts a ton of specs that we would never dare attempt to decipher, such as "a combination of two 300B tubes, two German Telephony C3m drivers and a single Emission Labs 5U4G rectifier to produce a full eight watts into each of its two channels," according to Audio Junkies. We do like the cherrywood casing, however, even though it does look more appropriate to serve sushi.
Click here to see our photos
CES dedicated a hall to in-vehicle technology presenters, and many of them brought the wildest cars you've ever seen. These cars sprout LCDs, amps, and speakers on any and every available surface. We took a walk around to find the most outlandish, outrageous cars on display.
View complete CES 2008 coverage from CNET.
